


You, Me, The Kids, and Bubble Tea

by kyutebaekyeol (baek_yeollie)



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: M/M, Romantic Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-10
Updated: 2018-01-10
Packaged: 2019-02-22 11:54:33
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,328
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13166391
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/baek_yeollie/pseuds/kyutebaekyeol
Summary: #404: For Luhan, teaching young children, not as easy as it seems. Raising a son who's constantly full of energy, somewhat easy. Getting a new student to let go of her father's leg, slightly difficult. Trying to not fall for said student's father, extremely difficult.





	You, Me, The Kids, and Bubble Tea

“Here daddy, I picked it myself,” Chen grinned cheekily and placed a handful of pink tulip flowers on the island table. The giddy 5 year old skipped towards the dining table and hopped onto his favorite chair. He arranged his favourite Transformer plate and mug on the table while singing the new song that he learned in class yesterday. Soon, he started to get bored after waiting for his father’s reaction to his lovely gift. The boy pouted and furrowed his eyebrows when Luhan didn’t seem to appreciate his effort for picking him the flowers. “Daddy! Look at the pretty flowers!”

Chen’s sudden outburst startled Luhan whose concentration was on flipping the pancakes. He wanted his pancake to be perfect for his baby because Chen said that his pancake was “The tastiest pancake in the whole wide world”.

Smiling at the memory of his baby saying that for the first time, Luhan snapped back and saw a bunch of pink tulips on the table. He picked it up and laughed when he saw his baby still pouting, he then playfully brushed the flowers on those fluffy cheeks. “Daddy! It tickles!” Chen screamed and giggled.

Luhan’s heart swelled at his little boy. “This is beautiful, thanks ChenChen.”

“You’re welcome handsome daddy Lulu!” Chen chirped happily.

“What a sweet talker,” Luhan grinned. He placed the tulips back on the table and both father and son began to eat their breakfast.

‘Wait a minute, I’ve seen these flowers before,’ he thought as he kept on eyeing at the tulips while chewing his food. He then slowly scanned down Chen’s kindergarten uniform and noticed his dirty shoe. ‘Dirty shoe?’ Gasping, Luhan squinted toward his son’s shoes again and realized that Chen’s shoes were soiled with mud. ‘Oh no!’ Luhan got up from his chair and rushed to peek at his neighbor’s garden through their kitchen window.

His eyes widened when he saw the damaged that his son made to their neighbor’s beautiful tulip garden. ‘Kill me now,’ he mentally face palmed. The garden looked like it was run down by a wild boar. To be precise, his little wild boar. Closing his eyes, Luhan inhaled and exhaled deeply. “Chen…,”

“Yes, daddy?” Chen grinned, playfully swinging his legs while staring innocently at his daddy’s face.

Luhan bit his bottom lip to prevent him from unleashing his anger at his precious son. Chen’s long eyelashes and innocent kitten smile made him look so innocent. He inherited those traits from his mother Mina, who was Luhan’s high school lover. Chen was born out of their passionate young love when both of them were only 18 years old. They never married because Mina had a bright future ahead of her and she didn’t want to be tied down with a kid. Both of them had a mutual agreement that Luhan would take care their son and they never kept in touch again after Chen was born.

Luhan was so grateful that he had his parents to support him and to help him raise Chen. His baby boy was so blessed to have many people that loved him so dearly. Raising Chen at such a young age made Luhan mature faster than his peers. He realized that he loved kids and decided to further his tertiary studies in early childhood education. Upon graduating from his course, he worked as a kindergarten teacher to gain experience and planned to open his own nursery and kindergarten one day.

“Daddy? You look angry, I did something wrong again right?” Chen murmured with his head bent. He didn’t want to make his father upset, he just wanted to make him happy. He stopped asking questions about his mother because every time it would make his father look so sad.

Determined to make his father happy, Chen stood up from his chair. He wrapped his arms around Luhan's neck and pulled him into a tight hug. “Channie said that a warm hug could make daddy smile again,”

“I’m not angry ChenChen,” Luhan smiled and kissed on top of Chen’s head. “I’m just shocked. Thank you for these flowers, but did you realize what you just did to our neighbour, Grandpa Kim’s garden?” Luhan sighed when Chen shook his head and stared back at him with wide blinking eyes. “You plucked almost all the beautiful tulips in Grandpa Kim’s garden. It takes a lot of hard work to grow those beautiful flowers, Chen. Grandpa Kim would be so sad right now,”

“I-I made Grandpa K-kim..s-sad?” Chen stammered with tears pooling in his eyes.

“Finish your breakfast first. We are going to properly apologize to Grandpa Kim later,” Luhan said and wiped the tears in his son’s eyes.

“Daddy?”

“Yes, baby?”

“Is Grandpa Kim going to put me in a time-out? Like how daddy punishes me when I’m naughty?” The boy asked with his mouth full of half-chewed pancake. He didn’t like it when his daddy put him in a time-out, he would be sitting on a chair while staring at the blank wall for half an hour.

“Don’t talk with your mouth full” The father nagged and wiped the stain of strawberry jam on his son's chin with his thumb. “Finish up your breakfast and we will apologize to Grandpa Kim.”

“I’m sorry, Grandpa Kim,” The boy said meekly with his head bent down. Grandpa Kim looked so dumbfounded at the whole ordeal, scratching the back of his head while staring at his once beautiful garden which now is the picture of destruction.

He soon found his tongue. “It’s alright, boy. But now I have to replant my tulips all over again so I would need a helper. Can you help me?” Grandpa Kim smiled fondly at the boy who still had his head bent low in guilt.

“You’re not mad at me, Grandpa Kim?” Chen slowly lifted his head up with glistening eyes.

“If you agree to help me, I promise I won’t be mad at you.”

“Really?” Chen asked with enthusiasm at the prospect of no punishment for his misdeed.

Grandpa Kim then nodded his head. “Yes, but only if you promise to help me with my garden.”

“Of course Grandpa Kim! I promise!” Chen screamed. He felt so relieved that he didn’t have to do time-outs. He jumped towards Grandpa Kim to give him a nice big warm hug. He released the wobbling old man. “Bye, Grandpa Kim! I am late for school now.” He half yelled and half ran towards his father’s car.

“Quick Teacher Lu! We are going to be late!”

“Stop jumping and screaming so early in the morning, you’ll wake up our neighbors,” Luhan chided and shook his head at his son’s energetic outburst.

He then turned towards the old man. “I’m sorry Mr. Kim,”

“It’s alright, I’m not angry. He will help me replant my tulips, and next time when the tulips regrow, he will learn to appreciate it more,” Mr. Kim smiled and patted Luhan’s shoulder, signaling that it was all right.

Luhan heaved a sigh of relief and walked towards his car.

 

 

 

Luhan was arranging some of the toys that he used for his class story telling session when one of his 5 years old student’s loud voices echoed throughout the classroom.

“Teacher Lu! Baekhyun bit my ear!” Chanyeol yelled with tears streaming down his face. He ran towards the blond haired man, slamming his tear stained face on Luhan’s stomach.

“Oof!”

“It wasn’t me, Teacher Lu! It wasn’t me!” The accused boy yelled while vigorously shaking his head. He stuck his tongue out towards Chanyeol and quickly hid behind his Umin Hyung.

Luhan gave Baekhyun a hard stare for being rude in class. “Shh shh, it’s alright Channie. Let me check your ear.” He spoke softly to the sobbing boy and placed him to sit on his lap. As he was carefully inspecting Chanyeol’s red ear, Luhan let out an exaggerated gasp. “There is a very big bite mark on Chanyeol’s ear!”

Chanyeol started wailing again when he heard his teacher’s remark. “I’m going to lose my pretty ear!”

The little boy’s sudden outburst startled Luhan. Luhan didn’t mean to scare Chanyeol. Cooing, he wrapped Chanyeol into his embrace and used his thumb to rub his little red ear.

Xiumin was tired of Baekhyun using him as a shield. “Baek, just go to Channie already.”

“B-but Umin Hyung, Channie hates me now.” Baekhyun was on the verge of tears.

“He’s your best friend. Just say ‘I’m sorry’ and Channie will forgive you.”

“Really, Umin Hyung?”

“Yes, Baekkie. Now, go.” Xiumin grabbed Baekhyun’s arm and pushed him forward across the room to where Luhan was sitting with Chanyeol still sobbing on his lap.

“Is…Is Yeollie going to be alright?” Baekhyun whispered while caressing Chanyeol’s trembling back with his small palm. “I’m sorry Yeollie, I’m so sorry,” he sniffled, tears started streaming out from his small eyes. The smaller boy felt so sad when Chanyeol refused to look at his face. Still sobbing, Baekhyun climbed onto teacher Luhan’s lap and wrapped his small arms around Chanyeol’s body and pressed his face to his friend’s back.

Luhan grumbled while trying to balance two sobbing 5 year olds on his lap. Both of them were in a sobbing mess and one by one, other kids started to gather around their teacher with their curious eyes peering at their sobbing friends. Luhan sighed when he heard Jongin’s soft whine while tugging Baekhyun’s school uniform. Jongin was the most sensitive kid in his class as he had a very tender heart.

“Teacher Lu, are they okay?” Xiumin puffed his cheeks as he saw the two usually bubbly boys bubbling with tears.

“Yes Minnie, they will be okay. Can you gather all your friends and wait for me at the music corner? We are going to start singing our new song today,” Luhan smiled as he patted Xiumin’s head.

“Sure!” The bun cheeked boy beamed and started pulling all other kids to their singing corner. He also dragged a whiny Jongin along with him and pushed him to sit on one of the chairs.

Luhan was blessed that all the 5 years olds in his class, including his son, were so well behaved. They were a riot most of the time but they could also easily follow his instructions.

Luhan wiped the two toddlers tear stained faces, fixed their messy hair and said “Let’s start to discuss your problems,” then gently placed both Baekhyun and Chanyeol down.

“Yeollie forced me to drink milk! I hate milk! He said that a bogeyman would come and eat me if I don’t drink milk, I knew that he was telling a lie and I bit him for trying to scare me,” Baekhyun pouted and couldn’t stop scowling at his soon to be the ex-best friend.

“I just wanted him to grow taller,” Chanyeol whined while rubbing his throbbing ear.

“Chanyeol is your best friend right?” Luhan asked while slowly caressed Baekhyun’s puffed cheek with his palm.

Baekhyun nodded with pouted lips and arms crossed over his chest.

“Baekhyun is your best buddy too right Chanyeol?” Luhan chuckled when Chanyeol grinned and pulled the grumpy looking Baekhyun into his hug.

“Best friends don’t tell lies or hit each other,” Luhan shook his head and ruffled Chanyeol’s and Baekhyun’s hair. He smiled when both of the kids started pinching each other cheeks and they began to laugh together again.

“Teacher Lu! There is a very tall man approaching our class,” Chen howled while pressing his forehead at their class window. “Yeollie, come here! I can’t tiptoe any longer,” whined Chen.

Chanyeol walked to the window and saw a very interesting man with a little girl clutching his leg. Chanyeol was the tallest among other kids in his class so he was the informer for teacher Lu at what happened outside their class. Chanyeol could be telling them about the weather or any animal that he saw outside the window. The kids called him reporter Park Chanyeol or sometimes Park Nosey Chanyeol. “That man is so tall, I think he loves to drink milk!”

“I wanna see him too!” Baekhyun beamed and lifted both of his hands up in the air. “Pick me up!”

“Urgh, this is why you need to drink more milk! You’re getting heavier Baek,” Chanyeol grumbled while lifting his friend.

“I’m sorry, Yeollie,” Baekhyun said.

Chanyeol groaned when he accidentally smacked Baekhyun’s cheek on the glass window.

Baekhyun cried in pain but stopped when he heard the little girl started to weep while hugging her father’s leg. “Teacher Lu, the girl is crying!” Baekhyun yelled and waved his tiny hands toward the little girl’s father. “Don’t worry tall man, Teacher Lu will help you!”

“Chanbaek, stop yelling and go to your desks.”

“Yes, Teacher Lu,” both the boys trudged back to their desks.

“Today is Sera’s first day, so be nice to her alright?” Luhan smiled and looked expectedly at his class.

“Yes, Teacher Lu,” the kids chorused back.

Mr. Kim Junmyeon, the school headmaster already informed him that he would be receiving new student today, a little girl named Oh Sera. She was a daughter of Mr. Oh Sehun, the famous expensive suit maker in Gangnam.

Luhan snorted, all of the kid’s parents were rich. Seoul International School is an exclusive institution made to cater to rich parents, the children of the elites in Seoul. They have a pre-school, middle school and high school all within the same compound. Even though the school fees are very expensive. Luhan was glad that Chen got the privilege to study here because he was working as one of the teachers.

Luhan walked outside to the hallway to greet Mr. Oh Sehun and his sobbing daughter. He couldn’t stop staring at Mr. Oh’s good looking face. Sera’s father wore a gray color suit that perfectly tailored to his well-built body. His perfectly styled short black hair started to get messy when he tried to pull Sera from off from clutching his leg. ‘His long legs,’ Luhan gulped while shaking his head, hoping to destroy his naughty thoughts from messing up with his mind. Luhan’s curious eyes darted to Mr. Oh’s long arms, there were a few colorful hair bands on his wrist. Luhan couldn’t help to chuckle when he saw Mr. Oh’s fingernails were painted with shocking pink color nail polish.

“Welcome to the school Mr. Oh Sehun, I’m Luhan, Sera’s teacher,” Luhan bowed and stretched out his hand to Sera’s father. He smiled when Mr. Oh seemed reluctant to grab his hand but kept on staring at Luhan with a flustered face.

“Just call me Sehun,” Sehun murmured and finally grabbed Luhan’s hand. He blushed when the color of his fingernails could be seen clearly by Luhan. Sera loud cried startled both of them and Sehun continued to calm his wailing daughter. “I’m sorry, she was not in a good mood this morning, she usually is a sweet girl, right Sera?” Sehun cooed and caressed his daughter's long hair.

Sera was a very beautiful girl with a long silky black hair that flowed down her waist. She had long eyelashes with a pair of watery big eyes. She inherited her father’s good looks. “Don’t cry Sera-ssi. Don’t you want to show your pretty smile to all of your new friends? They can’t wait to meet you,” Luhan whispered and gestured to his classroom window.

Sera sniffled and peeked at the said window. The little girl could see a very tall boy with big elfish ears grinning at her while other kids were busy jumping to peek at her through their classroom window.

“I want papa to tie my hair!” Sera whined and pressed her watery face onto Sehun’s pants again.

“Alright, anything for you Sera-ya. What color do you want today?” Sehun smiled and placed his wrist in front of his daughter.

“Pink and red,” Sera whispered.

“Those are pretty colours! Sera-ssi, would you like to come inside our class? Your papa can tie your hair there with the pretty hairbands. You have such beautiful hair Sera-ssi,” Luhan caressed Sera hair and smiled when the little girl finally released her tiny fists clutching her papa's leg.

“Come on in,” Luhan ushered the shy Sera and the tall man to enter the classroom. “It’s their break time, I hope you don’t mind if the kids start to hover around you. Kids are always curious when there are new things in their surroundings.”

“It’s fine, Mr. Lu” Sehun looked down at Sera who was now scanning the classroom.

“Call me Luhan,” The honey blond teacher corrected him.

“Sure, Luhan.”

The teacher smiled, liking how his name rolled off from the attractive man’s tongue.

Luhan left Sehun and Sera at the front right corner of his classroom, right beside the teacher’s desk. He walked to his desk and began jotting down some notes on his teaching journal while eyeing his students that hilariously started to act like a group of Meerkats, shamelessly peering at the father daughter duo.

He smiled fondly when he looked at how gentle Sehun was with his daughter. The well-dressed man sat on the carpeted floor with crossed legs with Sera on his lap. He couldn’t stop staring at Sehun’s face in full concentration, his pink lips pursed into a thin line while his long nimble fingers brushed through his daughter’s long smooth hair, combing it with a hot pink colored comb that he kept inside his suit pocket. He kept on talking and humming to Sera while tying her hair into a neat ponytail.

Chen’s whiny voice snapped Luhan from ogling at Sera’s extremely good looking dad. “Daddy? Why do you keep staring at the new girl’s father?”

“No, I’m not staring at him,” Luhan blushed. There was something about Sehun that drew Luhan’s attention. His long legs, broad shoulders, massive height, pink kissable lips and his facial features that could rival a Greek god. He liked the way Sehun treats his little princess. It made him wonder how well could he pamper his lover, cue for daydreams.

“Daddy? Daddyy~” Luhan’s daydream was interrupted by his own little one.

“Daddy your face is so red like a tomato. Are you okay?” Chen frowned while placing his small palms on Luhan’s cheeks.

Chen’s cold hand slapped Luhan into reality. ‘Why am I like this? I can’t fall in love with some stranger so easily like this right?’ Quickly shaking his head, he ruffled his son’s hair. “Daddy is fine, go to your friends,” he forced a smile while closing his journal and kept it back in his drawer.

Puffing his cheeks, Luhan stood up and started fixing his hair before walking towards Sehun’s sitting spot. Sera looked much calmer with her big eyes glancing warily at her new friends that were eagerly waving their hands to her from their singing corner.

“Sera, we are going to learn a new song today. Would you like to join us? It will be fun,” Luhan smiled at Sera.

“No! I don’t want to go!” Sera burst out, silence filled the class.

“Papa why can’t you stay with me?” Sera sobbed and clung to her father’s neck, pulling him into a tight hug that Sehun’s face started to get red because the lack oxygen pumping through his head. He struggled to balance himself from falling on his back because of Sera’s clingy attitude.

“Sera, you papa has to go work. You can see him again soon, come meet with your friends first, they are waiting for you,” Luhan smiled and patted Sera’s head.

“Meera! Meera!” Chen screeched while running across the classroom to where Sera was seated, holding an unidentified object in his hands.

“My name is Se.Ra. Sera, not Meera” Sera pouted, grumpily correcting Chen’s wrong pronunciation while crossing her arms over her chest.

“Oh…sorry, Sera,” Chen sheepishly smiled. “Sera…Look at this!” he beamed, excitedly shoving a half dead bull frog right in front of Sera’s face.

Luhan’s eyes widened as soon as he saw the slimy frog in Chen’s hand. About to launch into a panic attack, he expected loud screaming to escape from Sera’s mouth. Luhan’s hair stood up on his arms and at the back of his neck. He hated slimy animals, he detested bugs too. Chen was the brave one who would bravely swat the bugs away and he was also the one who would hold a slipper to smack cockroaches while calming his screaming daddy.

“Cool! Where do get it?” Sera laughed and scrambled off from her Papa’s lap, stepping closer to Chen to get a closer look at the frog.

‘Wait, what?’ That wasn’t what Luhan expected Sera’s reaction to be.

Chen smirked. “I named him Bob the Frog. Teacher Yifan lets us play near the school pond during playtime, and he lets us pick up bi~g snails too.” the boy used his tiny hands to demonstrate how big the snails were.

“I caught Bob yesterday and kept him inside Teacher’ Lu’s closet,” he giggled while pointing towards Teacher’s Lu closet just right beside the students’ shoe cabinet by the classroom door.

Luhan couldn’t stop his body from squirming when he imagined the slimy and disgusting frog hiding in his closet for the entire time. He just stared at the frog’s eyes, too frozen to even swat it away from Chen’s hand.

“Bob is so adorable!” Sera cooed while gently tapping the frog’s head with her small hand.

“Can I go with them, papa? I want to catch grasshoppers!” said Sera excitedly.

“Sure, have fun dear,” Sehun smiled and nodded encouragingly to Sera.

She walked with Chen towards the other kids that were jumping around, so eager to get their hands at the nearly dead frog in Chen’s hand. Puffing his cheeks, Sehun stood up and started fixing his messy hair and wrinkled suit.

“Chen…I let you and your friends play with Bob for a while alright?” Luhan said while looking at the children that were clapping excitedly with their eyes intensely glued to Bob.

He then turned to the man in suit.

“Sehun, may I know who’s going to fetch Sera this evening? Would it be Mrs. Oh or you?” Luhan asked while grabbing Sera’s bag pack from Sehun’s hand.

“I-I’m a single father,” Sehun sheepishly smiled.

“Oh…me too…,” Luhan murmured.

There was a sudden thick air of silence between them that made Luhan realize how awkward he made things for the both of them. He couldn’t stop blinking his eyes, bewilderedly staring at Sehun’s not amused face. He could feel his face getting hotter by the second, especially when his eyes met Sehun’s. He would much rather kiss Bob the frog’s mouth than be in this embarrassing situation with Sehun right now.

“Gosh…I-I mean…I…can you please ignore my stupid remark? Please?” Luhan whined whine rubbing his face with his palm.

Sehun chuckled as he hung Sera’s pink color water bottle strap on Luhan’s shoulder. “That’s good to know,”

“Teacher Lu! Bob ran away!”

Luhan gasped in horror when he heard Xiumin’s voice booming throughout their classroom. The kids were cheering and laughing so loud while running all over the classroom. The serene atmosphere in the classroom turned into total chaos in a matter of seconds.

“Move away! Move away! Don’t step on Bob!” Sera and Chen screamed while trying to push their friends that were trying to kick Bob with their tiny legs. Bob looked so lost, hopping wildly all over the floor. Baekhyun and Chanyeol were bouncing along beside the clueless frog; happily copying Bob’s every move.

 _‘Oh God, how do I stop this madness?’_ Luhan shuddered at the thought of touching the cold and slimy frog.

His mind was so busy thinking ways to stop the commotion without ruining his image as the school teacher and an adult. He shouldn't be screaming along with the kids while trying to push the frog out from the classroom using a broom, right? How the hell was he going end this madness?

Sehun laughed looking at the children’s funny reactions especially their teacher Lu’s priceless pale face. Sera’s cute giggles also made him smile. It was the first time Sera genuinely laughed after being separated with her mother last month.

“Teacher Lu? Let me help.”

“H-huh?” Luhan stuttered while looking at Sehun’s handsome face. “That’s alright, you can go now Sehun, you’re probably late for work,” He looked down at his shoes, hiding his flushed face.

“You’re scared of the frog right?” Sehun snickered while shaking his head. He still remembered Luhan’s grimacing face when the teacher looked at Bob in Chen’s hand.

“No!” Luhan scowled. He would never admit that he was a coward in front of the children’s parents, especially this tall and handsome man. Teachers should always look brave and be someone that the kids could depend on.

“Lu, I can help, find me Bob’s container and uhm...can you let me go?” Sehun gave a pointed look towards Luhan’s hand that was clutching tightly onto the sleeve of his now crumpled suit.

Luhan shuddered at Sehun’s deep voice. He couldn’t stop blushing when he saw his hand was gripping on Sehun’s suit while his other arm tightly hugging Sera’s bag pack. He was acting just like Sera's clingy attitude towards her father that morning. He quickly released Sehun’s suit and rushed to get Bob’s container inside his closet. He ran back to Sehun and passed the container to him. He was holding his breath the entire time when Sehun peeled off his suit and rolled up the sleeves of his shirt to his elbows.

The tall man headed towards the kids that didn’t stop giggling together at the singing corner, squealing every time Bob jumped in the air.

Luhan sighed in relief when Sehun managed to catch Bob with his bare hands and the frog was finally back inside his transparent container. Luhan almost cursed when Sehun teasingly tried to shove the container toward him.

“I-I’m going to keep Bob inside the closet alright? You can play with him in your P.E lesson with teacher Yifan,” Luhan diligently explained the situation to the kids that were staring at him with watery eyes. _‘Great, now I look like I murdered their precious Bob.’_

“Go and take a seat at the singing corner again, I’ll be back soon,” Luhan muttered to the kids with his eyes following Sehun’s every move. He started to panic when he saw Sehun walking towards his closet. Luhan struggled to keep his closet clean and neat when Chen always used the space to store his toys and other mysterious things that he found around the school compound. Until this day, he didn’t even know that Bob’s lived inside his closet. Who knew other weird things that could pop out from his cluttered closet? _‘Oh god…no…stop!’_ he rushed over to stop Sehun from opening his closet.

“There, he’s back inside the batman cave,” Sehun singsong while shoving Bob's container in between Luhan's messy belonging inside the closet.

“I…You…,” Luhan deadpanned, it was too late, Sehun already saw how wrecked his closet was. He didn’t know what to say to defend himself.

Scrunching his nose, Sehun leaned closer to Luhan and whispered. “The closet smell like you,”

Luhan's eyes widened when he heard Sehun's snarky remark. “Did you just bluntly say that I smelled like a frog?” Luhan snapped, almost going to slam Sera's backpack on her father's smug face. Scowling, he put his head in his closet and started sniffing the air inside. _'My closet smell just fine?'_

"Your closet smell so homey, like home,” Sehun smiled while glancing at his wristwatch. “I’m late for work, see you this evening Lu,” he bowed and rushed to exit the classroom.

 

 

Luhan hummed as he slumped his body on the couch while his hands lazily switching the channels on the television, searching for the rerun of his favorite drama series that he missed during the weekday. Chen usually wakes up late on the weekends so there was plenty of time for Luhan to relax before the little bundle of energy started seeking for his full attention again. The teacher was about to loosen his stiff muscles and making himself comfortable on the couch but all that was disturbed when his phone that he placed on the coffee table started to ring. He glared at his noisy phone. Luhan didn’t like to be bothered so early in the morning, especially during his day off. A frown appeared on his cherubic face as he stared at the unknown number that was flashing non-stop on the screen. After minutes of mentally debating whether to pick up the call, Luhan finally decided to answer the phone.

“Teacher Luhan? I’m Sehun, Sera’s father,”

“S-Sehun?” Luhan stuttered and quickly cleared his throat, knowing too well that his voice would sound raspy early in the morning. Pressing the phone closer to his ear, the teacher pursed his lip, silently waiting for Sehun’s next words.

“Yes, I’m Sehun. I’m sorry to bother you so early in the morning Lu, I really need your help,”

Luhan’s heart starts to beat erratically when he heard Sehun calling him ‘Lu’. He didn’t know why did his stomach churn at the pet name, it brings warmth to his entire body.

 _‘Get your shit together Luhan. He needs your help,’_ he mentally screamed while trying to calm his wildly beating heart.

“How can I help you Sehun?” he murmured hesitantly.

“Bob is dead, Sera didn’t stop crying, and she kept calling for Chen. My daughter doesn’t have any friends. Would..No, I mean, can you please come to my house? I’m sorry if I sound pushy or demanding but I can’t bear to see my princess so hurt, she didn’t even touch her food. Please help me, Lu,”

Luhan bit his bottom lip, thinking hard. Sehun’s voice sounded so distressed over the phone. Chen usually stayed with his parents on weekends. His father would be picking Chen up in the afternoon. His parents had been nagging about how Luhan should socialize with more people his age. They said that he was still young, he should go out and enjoy his youth while he still could.

Closing his eyes, Luhan inhaled and exhaled deeply. Sehun’s velvety voice sounded so sexy over the phone. Cold sweat began to form on Luhan’s forehead. The teacher hated exercising or any form of physical activity, but right now he felt that he just ran a marathon. Sighing, Luhan snapped out it. “Alright, text me your house address Sehun, I’ll be there in an hour,” he murmured while trying to calm his heart.

“There’s no need. My driver is coming to pick both of you up at your house in an hour,”

Luhan quickly declined Sehun’s offer. “We can go there by yourself, you-”

“My driver will be picking you up, see you later Lu,”

Luhan stared bewilderedly at his phone screen.

Did he just hang up on me?

Blinking in shock. Sehun just ended their phone conversation while he was in the middle of rejecting his kind offer.

Rude.

Shoving his phone into his pocket, he got up from the couch and headed straight to Chen’s room. “Gosh, how am I going to explain to Chen that his Bob is dead?”

 

 

“Chen!” Sera sobbed and ran into Chen’s arms. She continued to sob while trying to explain about Bob’s pitiful death in between her soft hiccups and slurry sentences.

“Don’t cry pretty princess,” Chen grinned and patted Sera’s head with his small hand. “I’m sure you didn’t mean it, Bob is in a good place right now, right daddy?” he beamed while staring at his father’s face.

“Here, I picked these snails from Grandpa Kim’s garden for you!” he pried himself away from Sera’s arms and presented a small transparent box that contained two giant snails to the little girl.

Sera wiped her teary eyes with her tiny fists and softly murmured. “Are you going to be angry at me? I let Bob play in the living room, then Papa stepped on him. Papa’s feet were humongous! Bob died on the spot!” Sera wailed again while pointing towards the crime scene.

Sehun gulped down his saliva when Chen and Luhan shifted their gaze from Sera and scowled at him. “I-I just woke up, I didn’t know Bob was on the floor,” he hurriedly explained, his hand awkwardly scratching the back of his head. The judging look that he got from the father and son duo made him flustered.

Sera grabbed Chen’s arm and pulled him into her house. “Come on, I’ll take you to Bob’s grave, Papa already buried him in our backyard.”

“Come inside Lu, thank you so much for coming,” Sehun smiled and welcomed Luhan into his house and both of them headed straight to the living room. “Make yourself comfortable,” he gestured to the comfortable leather couches.

Luhan awkwardly sat on Sehun’s posh looking couch wiping his sweaty hands on his lap. Fidgeting, he tried so hard not to look at Sehun’s sharp gaze at him. He sighed in relief when Sehun excused himself, finally leaving him alone in the living room. The teacher used the opportunity to peek at Sehun’s glorious body proportion as soon as the suit maker turned his back and left in confident strides.

 _‘So perfect.’_ Sehun looked so laid back in his house. Sera’s Papa looked young when he was not in his suit. He quickly tore his pervert eyes away from gawking at the suit maker when he heard Sera’s and Chen approaching from the backyard. He greeted them with a big smile on his face and welcomed both of them to sit beside him on the couch.

“Daddy Lu?” Sera squeaked while staring at her teacher’s face.

Luhan’s eyes widened when he heard Sera calling him daddy. He kept silent, just eyeing at Sera’s flustered face because he was too dumbfounded to give any response. The little girl looked so nervous, chewing her bottom lip while clutching at the ends of her dress.

“Chen said that he calls you daddy when both of you are not in school. Can I call you daddy too?” She muttered while shyly looking downwards. She continued to talk even when she didn’t get any reply from her teacher. “Daddy Lu, I’m hungry, Chen said you make the best pancakes, I love pancakes. Can you make some pancakes for me?”

Sehun that was quietly standing at the back of the couch finally saved the awkward silence by leaning down and gently caressing his little girl’s hair. “Sera, Teacher Lu is our guest, don’t ask him to do anything for you princess, I’ll cook for you.”

The little girl shook her head at the suggestion. Sera whispered in Luhan’s ear. “Papa can’t cook, please help us. I think Papa is hungry too.”

Luhan started to blush when Sehun didn’t bother to correct his daughter’s endearment towards him. He didn’t know how to explain to Sera how awkward it was for her to call him daddy. Sera had already started to be comfortable around him because of Chen. Chen always encouraged Sera to open up more to Luhan and he didn’t want to waste his son’s efforts.

“Okay, let me check the ingredient first,” Luhan smiled and pinched Sera’s chubby cheeks. He didn’t have the heart to reject the princess’ request.

“Yeay!” Sera and Chen chirped happily while clapping their hands.

“See! I told you my daddy is awesome!” Chen smirked, happily fist bumping with Sera.

Luhan laughed and stood up from the couch. “Can I use your kitchen Sehun?”

“Um..you don’t have to do anything. I’m going to order pizza for our lunch,” Sehun said while standing in front of Luhan to block the teacher from entering the kitchen area.

"Papa! Let daddy Lu go! I know you are hungry too!" Sera howled while jumping on the couch with Chen, scowling angrily at his father.

Sehun sighed in defeat and lead Luhan into his kitchen.

“What did Sera eat for breakfast?” Luhan asked as he stepped into Sehun’s large kitchen. The kitchen was so spacious and clean. It was the same size of Luhan’s living room.

“Cereal and milk,” Sehun replied while eyeing at the teacher that looked so amazed at his well-furnished kitchen.

“Lunch?” Luhan asked again, out of curiosity. He opened the refrigerator and gasped when he saw so many healthy and fresh ingredients that could be used.

“Fried chicken delivery? We don’t know yet.” Sehun murmured, peeking at Sera and Chen that were giggling together, watching cartoons in the living room.

Luhan sighed and started rummaging the refrigerator. “It’s not healthy to eat fast food,” he blurted but froze when he realized how blunt he was towards Sehun. “I'm sorry, I didn’t mean to sound so rude, just ignore my stupid comment.”

Sehun chuckled when he noticed Luhan tried to hide his flustered face behind the refrigerator’s door. “Our maid usually cooks for us every day, but today she had to take an emergency leave, so we didn’t have much choice. I’m too lazy to eat outside today.”

“Oh,” Luhan murmured, closing the refrigerator door and placed all the ingredients that he needed on the kitchen island. “I’ll make pancakes then. I’ll prepare some pasta for both of you too so you can eat it for lunch,”

“That’s awesome!” Sehun smiled. “What can I do to help?”

“You don’t have to help me Sehun, you can go play with the kids,” Luhan quickly replied. He knew that he couldn’t get his cooking done if Sehun was beside him. He might be so distracted that he might chop off his own hand. Luhan quickly pushed Sehun out of the kitchen and started making preparations.

“Wear your apron, you’ll ruin your nice shirt, Lu,” Sehun grabbed the blue color apron that was hanging beside the cabinet.

“I-I,” Luhan gasped when Sehun came from behind and wrapped the apron his waist. He stood frozenly at the kitchen sink, too dumbfounded to even move his body. Gulping hard his saliva, he could feel Sehun’s body warmth radiating all over his back. He couldn’t even breathe properly when Sehun leaned closer to his ear with his chin hovering on his shoulder.

“You’re so skinny,” Sehun had to tie the apron twice around Luhan’s small waist.

“Daddy Lu!”

Luhan was so startled hearing Sera’s high pitched voice calling his name from the living room. He tilted his head to the side, craning his neck towards the living room but his lips accidentally landed on Sehun’s cheek.

Luhan blinked, his long eyelashes brushed against Sehun’s cheek. They were so close that he could see all the pores on Sehun’s flawless face. His face scrunched when the suit maker’s mild expensive aftershave hits his nose. Mentally cursing, Luhan quickly pulled away from Sehun’s cheek, as if he was touching something hot and it burnt his lip. He couldn’t move his body freely because Sehun’s arms were still tightly wrapped around his waist. The suit maker was still holding on to the small bow that he tied in front of his stomach. It was all too much for Luhan; their close proximity and Sehun’s soft breathing tickling Luhan’s ear created goosebumps all over his body. Clearing his throat, Luhan tried to act that he was not bothered. “Yes, Sera?”

“Papa likes hugging people that smell nice, don’t let him distract you, kick him away!” Sera giggled and slumped back on the couch to continue her playtime with Chen.

Sehun’s soft chortling vibrated all over Luhan’s back. Their eyes met for a brief moment before Luhan tore his gaze away. He couldn’t take it anymore; Sehun had a pair of powerful eyes. “S-sorry,” he murmured breathlessly.

“That was an accident. Not that you’re intentionally want to kiss me, right Lu?” Sehun smirked and freed Luhan from his arms.

“Of course…why would I kiss you out of the blue?” Luhan retorted. His face was getting hotter and red because of the embarrassment. Rolling his eyes, he continued washing the vegetables in the kitchen sink to avoid looking at Sehun’s face.

“Of course,” Sehun snorted while playfully ruffling Luhan’s hair. “I’ll go play with the kids,” he smiled and walked away from the kitchen area.

“Please,” Luhan grumbled, hands gripping at the edge of the kitchen countertop. He was so glad that Sehun decided to step away from the kitchen. He breathed deeply, trying to calm his heart. _‘Why am I like this? I’m acting like a blushing schoolgirl with her crush. Gosh Luhan, get a grip of yourself!’_

 

 

Sera couldn’t stop singing praises about how delicious Luhan’s pancake all throughout breakfast. Sneaking a glance at the taller man eating quietly, Luhan admired the side view of his strong jawline and cheekbones. The suit maker munched his food in silence, enjoying his breakfast time and he made sure that he kept his phone away. Sehun gave all his attention to his daughter with a smile that never faded from his face as he listened to her stories.

“Papa?” Sera wiped her maple syrup stained lips with her hand and placed her spoon on the table.  

Sehun smiled at his princess. “Yes, sweetheart? Do you want another pancake? You already ate 4 pieces of them,” he teased.

Shaking her head vigorously, Sera pouted. “Do I have to follow you to your office? I’m going to get bored if you leave me alone inside your office. You promised that you're going to play with me, no work!” she grumbled and puffed out her cheeks, arms crossed over her chest.

Chen that was so busy eating his food flinched because of Sera’s sudden outburst, scooted closer to his daddy, holding onto his father’s shirt.

“I’m sorry angel, something happened with the material that we got from the supplier. I have look at it before they can proceed anything. It’s just a quick look and we are going home hmm..?”

“Why are the sup…player keep making mistake? They are baddies! They keep Papa away from me, so they should be kicked far away! You want me to help you papa?” Sera said with furrowed eyebrows.

Chuckling, Sehun shook his head. “No princess, it’s sup-ply-ers, not supplayers.” He enunciated clearly. ‘It’s alright dear, I can fix it. If they make more mistakes, I’ll bring you to kick them far away alright little boss?”

“I can kick them far away to the Far Far Away land,” Sera puffed out her chest and tried to look as menacing as possible.

Chen placed his pancake on Sera’s empty plate. “Sera-ya, you should understand that our daddy and papa needs to go to work to support us,” he smiled when he saw Sera stopped mid chewing her pancake, looking like a chubby bunny. “My grandpa said that my daddy always busy with work that he sacrificed his heart. Daddy didn’t have time for any lover, my daddy is lonely,”

Luhan choked on his food, wheezing as he tried to cough out a piece of pancake that got stuck in his throat. “That’s too much information,”

Sehun laughed while handing Luhan a napkin and a glass of water. “Are you alright poor lonely teacher Lu?”    

Sera frowned. “My papa is always busy with work too. So he’s probably lonely like daddy Lu too right?”

Chen clapped his hands excitedly. “Why can’t they get married instead? That does solve their loneliness problem right?”

“Yeah! We can play together forever!” Sera chirped, eyes staring at her Papa’s face.

Sehun chuckled and caressed Sera’s long hair. “We’ll think about that, right Lu?”

“Yeah,” Luhan answered halfheartedly while scratching his neck. He didn't know why he even answered Sehun's question without giving it too much thought. His cheeks felt like it burst into flames.

“Think hard alright daddy?” Chen beamed. “Sera, let’s feed those snails some leaves in your garden,” he suggested and carried Sera’s snail box.

"Let’s go!” Sera jumped from her seat and followed Chen to the backyard.

Luhan sighed in relief as soon as the kids walked out from the kitchen. He could feel his face slowly getting hot; flustered by the way Sehun was staring intensely at him.

Through his peripheral vision, Luhan knew that the suit maker was eyeing at him while sipping his morning coffee. Clearing his throat, Luhan started cleaning the dining table. “You always take Sera to your office?

Sehun shrugged while placing his coffee mug on the table. “There's no one taking care of her today, the maid is taking an emergency leave. I have no choice Lu,” he murmured. Sehun rested his elbows on the table and tucked his hands under his chin just to stare at Luhan’s face.

“Oh,” Luhan gulped, trying his best not to look at Sehun. _‘What’s with the staring?’_

Chen ran into the kitchen while holding Sera’s hand. “Can I help take care of Sera, Papa? Sera said that I can call you papa because she calls my daddy Lu daddy,”

“How are you going to take care of her?” Sehun smiled and pinched Chen’s nose.

Chen scooted closer towards Luhan and rested his chin on his daddy’s shoulder. “Daddy, can we take Sera to play with grandpa today?

“That’s actually a great idea Chen. Your grandma would love to play with a little princess like Sera,”

“It’s alright Lu. Sera, I think we bother your daddy Lu and Chen enough for today,” Sehun said while patting Chen’s head.

Sera pouted. “Papa, can I go with Chen to his grandfather’s house? Please, Papa?”

“You can go…if only your daddy Lu agree to take you,” Sehun muttered, sluggishly propping his back against the chair as he waited for Luhan’s answer.

“Sure, my parents would be happy to play with them,” Luhan beamed when he saw how happy Chen and Sera was, hugging each other while jumping excitedly. Sera grabbed Chen’s hand and tugged him towards her playroom. She insisted that they had to pack all her favorite toys to play together at Chen’s grandfather house. “Well, I think we should start cleaning this up. You’re going to your office right?”

Sehun nodded while helping Luhan to clean the dining table. He grabbed Luhan’s arm when the teacher started picking up the dirty plates. Grabbing all the plates in Luhan’s hand, Sehun yanked the teacher to sit back in his chair again. “That’s enough Lu; I’ll clean this up,”

“Are you going to stare at me while I’m washing this?” Sehun teased. “I’m pretty sure that I don’t look good while doing this, go and take a rest in the living room,”

Luhan blushed to be caught red-handed while ogling at the firm back of the suit maker. “I-I need to pack the pasta that I already prepared for you guys earlier. They can eat it at my parent’s house,” he stood up from the chair and started searching for empty food containers inside the kitchen cabinets.

“What about my share?”

“Your share?”

Sehun grinned and bumped their shoulders together. “My pasta Lu, can you pack it for me too?”

“I-I’m sure that you can eat other expensive food at your office,”

“I love home cook food, pack one for me please?”

“It’s just a simple…,”

“Pack it for me Honey boo?”

“Shut up, I’ll pack it, geez,” Luhan grumbled while dividing the pasta into the food containers. His cheeks were getting redder when he heard Sehun’s soft laughter at his side.

Luhan was resting on the couch as he waited for the kids to finish packing their toys. He knew that Sehun was on his way towards him when the smell of his expensive perfume began to distract him from the TV. The kids barged into the living room a second later, holding on to Sera’s pink color luggage bag. “Wow, that’s a lot of toys princess!”

“I brought all my toys and nail polish. I like painting nails, I want to paint Chen’s grandparent’s nails too,” Sera chirped.

“I’ll send you to your parent’s house, let’s go,” Sehun said while grabbing the packed meals on the coffee table.

“You have to go to work, we can take…”

“I’ll send you there, full stop,” Sehun smiled and walked to the door.

Luhan was too dumbfounded to give any response when Sehun cut him off again. Annoyed that his speech was disrupted, he kept frowning at Sehun that was busy grabbing his car keys and coat at the table right beside the entrance door. He flinched when Sera’s small hands tapped his cheeks.

“Daddy Lu, Papa is not going to let you go, papa really...really likes people who smell good and you definitely smell like Papa's favorite bubble tea,” Sera laughed and dragged her luggage bag to follow her father.

“I smell like bubble tea?” Luhan blinked while sniffing his own body.

 

 

Luhan gathered all the brushes and palettes that the kids used to paint the mural on their classroom wall into a big bucket. His eyes darted towards Sera and her classmates that were walking to the bathroom to get themselves clean from the paint on their hands and faces. The bright smile on Sera’s face every time she laughed with her friends put Luhan’s heart at ease. He was glad that Sera, the little girl that was looking so gloomy on her first day at school was now grinning and happily playing with her friends after just a few weeks of spending time with them. Luhan knew that his son, Chen manage to thaw the ice princess’s cold heart with his cheeky and bubbly personality.

“Luhan?”

Someone’s deep voice startled Luhan and snapped him from his thoughts. Clearing his throat; he turned his head to look at the owner of the voice.  _ ‘Sera’s father,’ _ Luhan breath hitched. He saw Sehun almost every day but the butterflies that were flapping inside his belly every time their eyes meet did not die down over time. Instead, it only intensified and grew stronger every single time.

“Sehun? You’re early, Sera is cleaning herself, they just finished their art class. Can you wait for a while?” he kept on blinking, he really needed to cut his long bangs. He could barely see Sehun properly because his long bangs was blocking his view. Sighing in defeat, he pushed his hair to the back with his right hand.

“There’s paint on your cheek,” Sehun murmured, pointing at Luhan’s left cheek.

“Oh?” 

Mortified, Luhan tried to wipe the paint off his face.

“You’re making it worse,” Sehun laughed while shaking his head.

After rubbing his cheeks for awhile, Luhan felt stupid. He eyed Sehun and the taller man seemed to be hiding his laughter. He sighed and stopped touching his face, “I give up.” He throws up both of his hands.

Sehun rolled up his sleeve and stretched out his arm in front of Luhan, displaying a bunch of colorful hairbands on his wrist. “Which one?”

“Huh?” 

“Pick a color.”

“Um..blue?” the kindergarten teacher answered hesitantly. The dark blue hairband caught his attention and blue is his favourite color.

Luhan’s body froze when Sehun started touching his hair. The suit maker didn’t seem to mind about their close proximity, but on the other hand, Luhan was about to lose his mind. His nose was only inch away from Sehun’s chest. 

_ Wow, he smells so good. Wait Luhan, pull yourself together, there are kids here for goodness sake! _

He glanced up at Sehun’s face, his brows furrowed in deep concentration, lips slightly parted and the tip of his tongue sticking out. 

_ Oh god his pink tongue. I really need to stop this, it’s going too far.  _

He shut his eyes tight and tried to calm his erratically beating heart. He shifted his head slightly because Sehun’s body perfumes was making him crazy. The suit maker smelled so good. Luhan could feel Sehun’s calloused fingers, carding between his hairs, gently gathering it before tying it together with the blue color hair band that Luhan had chosen earlier. He could feel his cheeks was getting hotter, his body felt like it was on fire.

“Now I can see your face,” Sehun chuckled and stepped back.

“T-thank you,” Luhan blushed, briefly touching his hair bun. He was glad that Sera and her friends were back into the classroom because the atmosphere between them started to get so awkward. He didn’t know what to say, he could still feel Sehun’s body heat and scent. He really like how Sehun was attentive and how the suit maker treated him gently.  

“I think that Sera’s father likes you Lu,” Joy, one of the kindergarten teachers mused while bumping her shoulder against Luhan’s. They were eating together inside the teacher’s room while waiting for their next schedule.

“T-that’s absurd,” Luhan retorted, fingers playing on Sehun’s blue hair band that he kept on his wrist. He had been using it for weeks and he didn’t have the courage to give it back to its owner. He was worried that he would hyperventilate when he meets Sehun after that incident. 

“I know you have been avoiding him. You always try to act busy in the teacher’s office when it’s time for the kids to go back home. Mr. Oh’s eyes kept on searching for you, believe me, I know,” Joy laughed.  

Luhan sighed. “If I say that I really like him, would I be a fool? You know, for falling in love so quickly?”  

“There’s no right or wrong way to fall in love, falling in love is a natural thing. If there’s some kind of attraction between the two of you, why don’t you give it a try?"

 

The night was still young, just before a quarter to nine but Luhan decided to get back home early. He had enjoyed his Saturday night partying with his friends but the heavy rain had ruined his mood. Luhan didn’t like to be outside his house in that particular weather.  Awful traffic jam, wet and slippery road, strong winds, he hated all the things that associated with heavy rain. The wind was so strong; he couldn’t even use the umbrella without his skinny body getting dragged by the strong wind. 

His friend, Tao dropped him in front of his parent house. Luhan waved back but his hands were trembling and his body was shivering due to the cold temperature. He ran the entire way to the door to avoid the cold. It was only a few steps but he was drenched from head to toe. His hair that he put so much effort to style was in a mess. He couldn’t even see properly as his fringe was plastered on his forehead. His expensive leather jacket didn’t protect his body from the harsh rain as his clothes were soaked from the inside out.  

As soon as he stepped into his parent’s house, he instantly forgot how moody he was before. 

_ Ah, there’s no place like home. _

The sound of a familiar giggling sound echoed throughout the house. 

_ Sera? _

Luhan froze when he saw Sehun sitting together with his parents and the kids in the living room. All of them were busy admiring the nail art on that Sera did for them. After the frog incident last month, Sera loved playing with Chen’s grandparents that she wanted to keep visiting them every Saturday. Luhan didn't mind because he knew that Sera’s grandparents lived in the States and she only meets them during Christmas. Sehun usually picks Sera up from the house early so Sehun never stayed for dinner before, but tonight was different. The suit maker looked so comfortable with his parents as he let Sera paint his nails.

“I’m home” Luhan murmured and speed walked to the stairs, heading straight to his room.

Luhan was in the middle of wearing his clothes when his mother knocked his bedroom door. “Come in,” 

His mother came in and pulled him in for a hug.

“You alright dear?”

“I’m fine, mom. Just tired. Had a long day.”

“You scared that fine gentleman downstairs. He thought that you didn’t like him to be here.”

“It’s not about Sehun, mom.” 

“Okay then, let's change the topic. That Sehun, is really hot for a single father.” 

“Mom! You’re a married woman! If anything, I choose dad,” Luhan yelped in pain when his mother slapped his arm.

Rubbing his arm, Luhan whined. “Mo~m!”

“Anyway, why is Sera and her father still here?”

“The weather is terrible and Sera said that her father’s eyesight is not good during heavy rain.”

Luhan nodded. It was understandable, the weather outside was dreadful. The past few days there was heavy non-stop rain causing flooding and trees to fall. It was dangerous for Sehun to be driving home that night. He was glad that Tao made it safely to his home after sending him back. “They already had their dinner?”

Mrs. Xi rolled her eyes. “Yes Lu, he helped me to cook and we already ate our dinner. Don’t worry, I will treat my future son in law nicely,” 

“He helped you to cook?”

“My future son-in-law looks sexy while flicking the salt bottle; he looked like he was a sexy chef in the kitchen,”

“Oh my god! You’re ogling at my…” Luhan paused. He was blushing while his mother smirked at him.

“You like him right?” Mrs. Xi smiled. “It’s about time to fall in love all over again, don’t you think so Lu?”

Luhan sat on his bed, pondering deeply on his mother’s parting words. 

_ Falling in love? It was so easy this time, it actually scares me. _

“Come on downstairs. The kids are already sleeping inside the pink color camp that they set up in front of the TV in the middle of the living room. Chen is so smitten by princess Sera, he was holding her hand in his sleep.”

“He treats her as if she is his baby sister,” Luhan snorted. After gathering some courage to face Sehun, Luhan tiptoed slowly towards the living room. 

“I can’t believe she did this,” he muttered under his breath when he saw the living room set up in a very romantic mode. All the lights were dimmed, scented candles were lighted and fresh rose petals covered the room. The atmosphere was cozy and warm. A couple of mugs, probably filled with Luhan’s favorite hot chocolate with marshmallows were placed on top of the coffee table, the cute touch completed the romantic night that his mother orchestrated for them. Luhan groaned at the romantic setup. They weren’t even dating. The atmosphere was great, except for the pitter patter of the rain on the glass window. That sound irked him a lot. His breath hitched when Sehun finally entered the room. 

The suit maker looked so comfortable, wearing his well-fitted clothes while sitting on the couch with the lower half of his body covered with a thick blanket. His eyes were glued to the TV and Luhan melted into a puddle of goo when he saw the sparkle in Sehun’s eyes every time something interesting happened in the movie, causing Luhan to bump onto the edge of the coffee table and stubbing his toe.

“Aish!” He cursed.

“Careful Lu,” Sehun said, his eyes watching Luhan’s every move.   

“I-I’m sorry about this, for all of this,” he gestured to the romantic setup. “My mother is getting out of hand.” he rubbed his forehead. 

“Actually, I like this. You, me and the candles,” Sehun murmured. “Come closer, it's cold,” he smiled and patted the empty spot beside him on the couch.

Luhan’s face immediately burst into flames.

This was the first time for them to actually talk comfortably like this. After that night, the awkwardness between them started to disappear. They could talk in a friendly manner every time Sehun picked Sera up from class. 

Biting his lower lip, Luhan just dumbly stared at Sehun. 

_ Should I? Or is it too soon to be *gulps* cuddling?  _

“Stop thinking so hard Lu. Come here, honey boo.”

Rolling his eyes at the pet name, Luhan scooted closer.

_ Oh god, his body is so warm. _

He snuggled closer to Sehun and Sehun covered both of their bodies with the same blanket. He could feel all the hair on the his nape stood up when Sehun leaned in closer to whisper in his ear.

“That’s not so hard right? I’m a natural body heater,” Sehun smiled smugly and handed Luhan his mug of hot chocolate. “I'm sorry if my sudden appearance in your house made you uncomfortable.”

Shaking his head, Luhan murmured. “No…it’s not about you, I…I like it when you are here,” his cheeks were flushed red because of the embarrassment but he tried hiding it by sipping his hot chocolate.

“Hmm…did the rain upset you?” Sehun guessed, eyes trained at Luhan.

Sinking his body lower, Luhan sighed. “It’s childish of me right?”

Sehun grabbed the empty mug in Luhan’s hand and placed it back on the coffee table. “There’s nothing childish about being scared because of certain things, it only shows that you’re human.”

Realizing how Luhan looked so tensed, Sehun playfully bumped their shoulders together. “Are you sure you’re not an angel, honey boo? Cause you really look like one now,”

“Gosh, change your pick up line, it’s making me cringe,” Luhan laughed while smacking Sehun’s arm.

“That’s better.” Sehun smiled. “ Is there a reason why you’re afraid of the rain? You can tell me, I’m a good listener.”

Taking a deep breath, Luhan stared off into a distance as he recalled his memories. “Rainy days brings me back to a terrifying memory when I was a kid.” he started. “My parents were working late that day. They asked one of the neighborhood boys to watch me for a while, to accompany me home. I was 8 years old at that time while that boy was 14. He told me that we are going to use the fastest route home, through the village forest.” Luhan winced. “It was not a good choice actually. The weather was so bad, it started raining heavily. The wind was so strong. I told him that I was having a bad feeling about walking through the forest in that weather but he called me a coward and he told me that boys should be brave. Afraid that he would start telling others about me being a chicken, I followed him into that forest. He said that he needed to go home fast to catch his favorite anime. The forest floor was so wet and slippery and it was so dark, I could barely see anything. Suddenly I lost sight of him and I started to panic. I kept on yelling, running aimlessly to find him in the forest until my right leg was caught in one of the tree roots and I fell down the steep slope. I couldn’t get up and I lost feeling in my right leg. I started bawling when I realized that I broke my leg.” Luhan paused to take a deep breath before continuing the story.

“That wasn’t the end, I fell into some dug up hole in the ground. Maybe it was an animal trap. Can you imagine I was sitting on the wet ground, in total darkness with the heavy downpour of water pouring into the hole like a waterfall? I really thought that I would die there and no one would find me.” 

“How long did it take for them to find you?” Sehun carefully placed his hand on top of Luhan’s and rubbed his thumb on the kindergarten teacher’s knuckles.

“Until the next morning,” Luhan sniffled. “I kept on yelling until I lost my voice, nobody came. I didn’t remember when I fell asleep. When I woke up it was already morning and I heard people calling my name.”

“Are you alright now?”

Wiggling his leg, Luhan raised his broken leg up in the air. “Other than hating rainy days, my leg is good as new.”

“That’s good.” Sehun muttered while placing his mug next to Luhan's on the coffee table.

Luhan yawned and tightly wrapped himself with the blanket. “How about you? What are you afraid of?” He look expectantly at the suitmaker.

“Me?” Sehun pointed to himself. “I can’t sleep in total darkness; it makes me feel suffocated.”

“That’s normal right?”

“It’s normal I think, but when Sera started to live with me, there was a time when she was having a nightmare and she wanted to sleep with me. I panicked because Sera loves to sleep with all the lights off. How could I tell her that her father is afraid of the dark? I mean, how could I comfort her when I’m fidgeting with cold sweat while trying to calm her down? I felt so useless.”  

“Um..this might be a little insensitive but I was curious. Where is Sera’s mom?”

“Well, Se-” 

“You don’t have to answer if you don’t want to.” Sorry if I’m intruding.” Luhan interrupted.

“No, no.” Sehun shook his head. “I want to. Since birth, Sera never left her mother, my ex-wife. My ex-wife got a job at the Korean embassy in China last year. Both of us wanted Sera to grow up here. My ex-wife is my best friend but our marriage didn’t work out well. We are better off being friends rather than sharing the same bed.”

“Sera’s mother sounds like a wonderful woman.” Luhan murmured.

“She is. We’re proud of her achievement.” Sehun smiled.

“Sera is a bright girl. Talk to her and she will understand that you can’t sleep in the dark.” Luhan suggested.

“Oh, we already talked about it last week. She patted my head and brings her sleeping mask every time she wanted to sleep in my room, so problem solved.” Sehun grinned.

“So, afraid of the dark huh?” Luhan frowned. “Do you want me to switch on the light?”

Peeking at Sera and Chen that was sleeping inside the tent, Sehun shook his head. “I like this dim setting, it's comfy. So other than the rain which makes you moody, you’re afraid of frogs aren’t you?”

“No, I’m not!” Luhan retorted.

“Bob is saying hi.” Sehun whispered while pointing at the empty space beside Luhan.

Shrieking, Luhan jumped in shock and the next thing he knew, he was sitting on Sehun’s lap with arms around the suit maker’s neck. Opening his eyes, Luhan almost stopped breathing when their eyes met. Their faces were so close that Luhan could still smell the strong chocolate scent in Sehun’s breath. “You…you tricked me! Bob is dead!” he huffed and lightly punched Sehun’s chest. He tried to get off from Sehun’s lap but to no avail as the suit maker wrapped his arms around his waist, stopping him from getting up. Luhan could feel his heartbeat beating so wildly that it might come out of his chest. His body was on fire, he couldn’t even look at the handsome man in the eye.

“You keep pulling me, it’s crazy.”

“Huh?” Luhan looked up.

“Just listen to your heart Lu, do you feel the same? Tell me that I’m not the only one that has a huge crush, so please stop running away from me.”

“Maybe you’re drunk?”

“I’m drinking hot chocolate, honey boo.” Sehun chuckled.

Pursing his lip, Luhan sighed. He had been denying the entire week about the attraction that he felt between them. “It’s insane, us…it’s insane right?”

Sehun laughed and pulled Luhan closer. He leaned closer and pressed his lips on Luhan’s forehead. “Tomorrow, you...me and bubble tea, a simple date. Let's give us a chance hmm?”

“What about the kids?”

“Well then. It’s you, me, the kids and bubble tea. Can I have a yes, honey boo?”

 

“It’s a yes, Mr. Sehun.”

**Author's Note:**

> I hope this story can at least make the prompter smile. for Writeforselumods, thank you for being so understanding and very helpful. Big thanks to the story beta reader Tabby for the 'fighting' spirit and idea support when things get tough ;


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